Earthvision Battle Royale 2018
The Earthvision Battle Royal 2018, also known as the EBR 2018, Earthvision 2018, or more Romania 2018, was the 3rd edition of the annual Battle Royale contest that took place in country. A total of 192 nations took part and sent one citizen to this event. The Earthvision consisted of four semi-finals, the first two starting on June 10 at 12 pm and 6 pm, while the third and fourth semi-finals started on the 11th at the same time. The host nation, Romania, was the winning nation of the 2nd edition the previous year, which meant that they automatically qualified to the Grand Final for this year's edition. The other 190 nations were drawn randomly into pots - regardless of country location - and distributed into the four semi finals. There, each citizen would compete in a fight to the death until twelve remain (11 in semi-finals 3 and 4). The qualifiers from each semi-final would then be rescued from the arena and 8 days later would make up the 48 (including the host nation) in the Grand Final. Each nation was allowed to pick their citizen in any way they choose, as long as they are picked before April 1st. Arena Though the choice of the arena is kept a closely guarded secret in the run-up to the Battle Royale, many speculated that the Arena would be somewhere in Transylvania due to that being Romania's most recognizable feature. Other options were the city of Bucharest and the southern coastline near Ukraine. The Arena was later revealed to be the Carpathian Mountains located in Transylvania. It was about 20 square kilometers large and featured a castle located on a lake and a few small villages with abandoned houses. Inside the arena were various poisonous plants and muttations like bears, wolves, and packs of dogs. The weather in the arena would change very fast, from sunny and dry with green surroundings to cold and barren with icy surroundings and everything in between, just so the citizens would have more obstacles to overcome. Format and Rules The draw to determine which nation would compete in which semifinal as well as the pod number for the host country took place in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, on December 10, 2017. Host was selected to start on Pod x. Each competing nation had to declare their intent to join by December 1st, and declare their competing citizen by April 1, 2018. Most countries picked their citizen through an internal selection. These are done when the governments hold a nationally televised lottery where citizens are assigned a set of numbers, and are chosen if their numbers are picked. There are millions of cases each year where people try to volunteer for to be their nation's citizen. In this situation, the volunteers are given as many lottery numbers as they can buy (in some countries they cost as little as $2, while in bigger countries like the US, Russia, Australia, etc. prices can go up to $1000 each), so the chances one of their number combinations is picked goes up. Though the vast majority of citizens picked embrace their fate and their chance to take part in this romanticized gladiator-style event, most governments dispatch thousands of personnel across their country so that they can reach their chosen citizen within minutes of being selected, just in case one tries to run away. In the meantime, citizen's are usually invited to multiple locations across the globe as to promote themselves and their country, create alliances, and get sponsors. While there are tens to hundreds of unofficial smaller parties all around the world, the biggest and most watched are the Official pre-parties sanctioned by the EOs. It is not required to go on tour to any of these parties; the decision is entirely up to the government and how much they want to spend their strictly-defined EO imposed budget on it ($500,000 per nation). The schedule for these major ones are: *San Francisco, USA - 10 March *Moscow, Russia - 16 March *Tokyo, Japan - 25 March *Sao Paolo, Brazil - 6 April *Paris, France - 12 April *Hong Kong, China - 24 April *Sydney, Australia - 27 April After being chosen, the citizens took part in a press conference outside their home and the build-up started. Depending on how early or late their national reaping was, they either stayed at their home (under close discreet surveillance), went on tour, or were transported immediately to the host country where they and the hundreds of other citizens stayed in a citizen-only village. They were allowed to have family and friends come and visit them up until the day before the citizen competed in the Battle Royal. All citizens had to arrive exactly one month prior to the first semi-final, in order for them to have enough time to train and acclimate to the surroundings. The EOs provided each citizen with a personal team that includes trainers, stylists, cooks, field specialists, etc. For the month or two that the citizens were there, they were encouraged to learn survival skills and do strength training so they could improve their survival chances (and provide a great entertainment show). The evening before the first semi-final, the Opening Ceremony took place. Comparable to the ceremonies of the Olympic Games, this one celebrated x history and culture and included many pyrotechnics, acts and performances, music, and fireworks. The Parade of Nations took place shortly afterwards, which included each citizen pulled by a high-tec chariot decorated to represent their country, surrounded by an entourage of performers showing off that country's culture and national symbols, all of which was led by their national flag. Speeches were held by the EOs and the x government, followed by citizen oaths and raising of flags. Finally, the cauldron was lit to symbolize the official start of the Battle Royale, to be extinguished only by the winner of the Grand Final themselves. Following the Opening Ceremony, all citizens went on a lockdown. They were not permitted to leave their building or have access to any outside information that could have helped them in the Arena. Citizens in semi-finals two, three, and four were not allowed to view or have any knowledge of what happens in the semi-final that occurs before theirs as well. This was to ensure that the suspense is kept and no citizen had an unfair advantage over an other. Qualification 190 Nations participated in this edition of the Earthvision Battle Royal. Forty-eight nations competed in the first three semi-finals, while forty-seven competed in the forth semi-final. Semi-Final 1 The first semi-final lasted from 12 pm on June 10th to 5:22 pm on June 12th. Semi-Final 2 The second semi-final took place from 6 pm on June 10th to 7:15 am on June 15th. Semi-Final 3 The third semi-final took place from 12 pm on June 11th to 8:58 pm June 16th. Semi-Final 4 The fourth semi-final took place from 6 pm on June 10th to 11:06 pm on June 16th. Preparation for the Grand Final Pod Order The draw for the pot order, which determines where around the Cornucopia a nation's citizen is to stand and take off for it when the Battle starts, was held on June 20th. It is seen as important because a citizen who gets drawn towards the middle is in a direct straight line to the Cornucopia and slightly closer, as oppose to those at either end who are further away and at an angle. Live Coverage of the Grand Final - with Commentary Welcome to the start of the Earthvision Battle Royale 2018. In just over 5 minutes, 48 citizens representing countries from all across the globe will be raised onto their pods going into the Arena, and in what will likely be two and a half weeks, one will emerge as the sole victor. One can only imagine how nervous and anxious the competing countries are, and how even more nervous the citizens must be! Day 1 (24 June) *Rodolfo Carias of is killed by Delphina Molinar of *Yoana Dimitrova of is killed by Calvina Elias of *Sefu Onyekachi of dies from frostbite *Kevin Sorem of is killed by Takai Shohei of *Solano Coimbra is killed by a pack of muttation wolves This concludes Day 1. Five tributes died, 43 remain. Day 2 (25 June) *Swen Mahler of is killed by Waatiq Fahsu of *Florian Verninac of dies from heatstroke This concludes Day 2. Two tributes died, 41 remain. Day 3 (26 June) *Taqiyya Farman of is killed by Cécile Mutombo of *Avram Svilanovic of is killed by Diwa Syed of This concludes Day 3. Two tributes died, 39 remain. Day 4 (27 June) *Sheila Seretse of is killed by Maela Manco of *Blair Sampson of is killed by Pertiwi bin Mayang of *Shara Turlanov of is killed by Dantae Rengel of *Amadeo Fiorelli of is killed by Fidelina Batista of *Pertiwi bin Mayang of is killed by Aaron Bates of This concludes Day 4. Five tributes died, 34 remain. Day 5 (28 June) *Liana Vastola of dies from starvation *Jalal Al-Madini of is killed by Delphina Molinar of *John Loveluck of is killed by Kamaal Hamidi of *Maela Manco of is killed by Hasan Dib of This concludes Day 5. Four tributes died, 30 remain. Day 6 (29 June) *Jelena Baksunovic of is killed by Calvino Elias of *Erehe Pihopa of is killed by Simeon Cox of This concludes Day 6. Two tributes died, 28 remain. Day 7 (30 June) *Misfar Haque of is killed by Dantae Rengel of *Semiha Ozcelik of is killed by Hasan Dib of This concludes Day 7. Two tributes died, 26 remain. Day 8 (01 July) *Atro Salminen of is killed by Fidelina Batista of *Stelian Marinescu of is killed by Cécile Mutombo of *Aaron Bates of is killed by Cécile Mutombo of *Waatiq Fahsu of is killed b Maja Dragin of This concludes Day 8. Four tributes died, 22 remain. Day 9 (02 July) *Simeon Cox of is killed by Lina Kieber of *Akhmet Amanetov of is killed by Mariana Hamrlíková of *Kamaal Hamidi of is killed by Mariana Hamrlíková of This concludes Day 9. Three tributes died, 19 remain. Day 10 (03 July) *Saqr Aman of dies from a combination of starvation and frostbite *Maja Dragin of is killed by Huo Qiang of *Calvino Elias of is killed by Ikram Kano of This concludes Day 10. Three tributes died, 16 remain. Day 11 (04 July) *Ikram Kano of is killed by Lina Kieber of *Mariana Hamrlíková of is killed by Lina Kieber of This concludes Day 11. Two tributes died, 14 remain. Day 12 (05 July) Attention Citizens of the Battle Royale! This afternoon, the Cornucopia will be replenished with food, supplies, and new weapons. May the odds be ever in your favor. *Hasan Dib of is killed by Fidelina Batista of *Enitan Loue of is killed by Diwa Syed of *Huo Qiang of is killed by Diwa Syed of *Delphina Molinar of is killed by Dantae Rengel of *Daniel Varadi of accidentally falls off the abandoned village church roof This concludes Day 13. Five tributes died, 9 remain. Day 13 (06 July) *Fidelina Batista of is killed by Nicoletta Gualdoni of This concludes Day 14. One tribute died, 8 remain. Day 14 (07 July) *Dantae Rengel of is killed y Takai Shohei of This concludes Day 15. One tribute died, 7 remain. Day 15 (08 July) There were no events today Day 16 (09 July) *Lina Kieber of is killed by Ellis Khan of This concludes Day 16. One tribute died, 6 remain. Day 17 (10 July) There were no events today Day 18 (11 July) *Zaaid Can of is killed by Takai Shohei of *Takai Shohei of is killed by Ellis Khan of This concludes Day 18. Two tributes died, 4 remain. Day 19 (12 July) *Cécile Mutombo of is killed by Ellis Khan of *Nicoletta Gualdoni of is killed by Diwa Syed of *Diwa Syed of dies from untreated injuries sustained in her fight with Nicoletta of Italy. And that ends it! Ladies and Gentlemen, the winner of the 2018 Earthvision Battle Royale is Ellis Khan of the Bahamas! Final Standings Closing Ceremony The Closing Ceremony took place the night of July xx and celebrated the victory of winner and winning country , and overall the success of the Games in general. More cultural festivities, closing speeches, a montage of the most dramatic and noteworthy moments of the Battle Royale, and of course a slow-mo replay of the winning kill. Winner re-entered the stadium to thunderous roars and applause and along with the prime minister of winning country, participated in the "passing down of the torch" segment of the Ceremony. The Prime Minister of winning country accepted responsibility of his nation to host next year's games, while Ioanela symbolically extinguished the cauldron, signaling the end of the X Earthvision Battle Royale.